21-01-2016, 04:35 PM
Carrying capacity:
Because of its seasonal character, tourism also burdens the infrastructural systems at peak periods. In addition to its impacts upon the natural environment, tourism also has considerable negative impacts upon cultural heritage, and social relationships. In consequence, the reluctance to accept tourism and/or hostile attitudes towards tourists have been experienced at many locations. As a result, tourists feel less at ease and dissatisfied, which in turn affects the productivity of the tourist industry.
air pollution caused by increased vehicular traffic;
pollution of the sea and of fresh waters by discharges of waste waters from tourist establishments;
pollution of the sea by discharges from tourist vessels (yachts, speed boats, excursion boats), passenger liners and car-ferries;
dumping of increased quantities of solid wastes in the sea and on land;
overburdened infrastructural systems in the summer months (water supply, roads, telecommunications), due to the seasonal character of tourism;
alteration within the urban networks, causing decay of old towns, especially the traditional agricultural market towns;
direct damaging of the natural and cultural heritage (excessive tourist visits);
abandoning of traditional activities (agriculture, fisheries) due to the opportunity of larger earnings
off tourism;
negative effects of the adjustment of residents to tourists' life styles on the local socio-cultural identity, creation of drastic social differences, increased numbers of criminal acts, etc. What is important are the perceptions, expectations and complete tourism experience, rather than the specific use of any one service provided for the tourist. Tourist attractions have the power to create the market for a given tourist resort, and this makes tourism an economic activity, related to specific products and demands at a specific place.
The carrying capacity of a tourist resort may be defined as:
The maximum number of people that may visit a tourist destination at the same time, without causing destruction of the physical, economic and socio-cultural environment and an unacceptable decrease in the quality of the visitors' satisfaction. Source: WTO, 1981 In terms of economy, tourist attractions are assets which cannot be reproduced. They are treated as a public good where market mechanisms do not show their normal allocative functions. A maximum number of users visiting tourist attractions may lead to their saturation and, in turn, result in a poorer quality of tourist experience. Negative effects of saturation can also be felt in the neighbouring, unsaturated areas, the attraction of which is diminished by unattractive environment and the associated lower quality of tourist demand in the immediate vicinity. In other words, the greater the intensity of tourist use, the more limited becomes the appeal of the tourist attraction. For example, in the case of museums or historic towns, saturation will be reached when the level of intensity of use becomes the same as the limit of the attraction’s capacity. In contrast, in the case of mountain summits, saturation will be experienced long before the limit of the attraction’s capacity is reached, since it may be assumed that the visitors enjoyment of a beautiful view will be frustrated by others who also wish to try and enjoy the same view at the same time. If the physical capacity of a tourist attraction is determined by a maximum number of visitors there at one point in time, the balance can be maintained by physically limiting the number of visitors at a time (as, for example, is done in many national parks in the USA), or by pricing policy, etc. This shows that tourists use a public good as a service which cannot be priced in the way in which some other goods and services can.
The physical-ecological parameters refer to all fixed and flexible components of the natural environment, as well as infrastructural systems, since these are mostly linked to natural resources. The fixed components include ecological capacity, the natural heritage capacity, length of the coastline, climate, etc. As these elements are mostly easy to measure, it is necessary to determine their numerical values which will then serve as the basis for determining the total carrying capacity The flexible components refer primarily to infrastructural systems, that is, water supply, sewerage, electricity and gas supply, transportation (road-traffic, in particular), public services (postal and telecommunication services, health services, law and order services, banks, shops and other services). Although the capacity of infrastructural systems is comparatively easy to measure, the numerical values cannot be used as the basis for determining their carrying capacity, but rather as a framework for orientation. That is because economic and political factors may have considerable influence on the raising of the infrastructural carrying capacity limit, through eventual state investments in infrastructure, tax allowances for investors (especially for the rehabilitation recycling of historic buildings in town centres, or new construction harmonized with the traditional vernacular architecture), etc. The socio-demographic parameters refer to all the elements which concern social communities, as well as local resident population with tourists and their interrelations. Unlike the demographic elements which are, in general, easier to measure (available man power, educational level of workers), the socio-cultural elements such as cultural identity of the local population, tourist experience, and the absorbative capacity for receiving new workers and tourists, are less measurable. The political-economic parameters primarily refer to the anticipated investment and economic measures for tourism development. These issues should be attempted to quantify wherever possible, particularly with regard to the lower limits of the total carrying capacity. If, for example, water supply is a major limit to development, and if the state administration offers to invest in the construction of new pipelines without encumbering potential investors in tourism, then, in determining the water supply capacity what should be taken into account is the situation after the new pipelines have been laid rather than the existing state. Similar to that, limits with regard to manpower, for example, should be adjusted if some government documents clearly suggest that migrations to an area will be encouraged (to some islands, for example), and if the resident population is willing to accept the newcomers. Although, in a way, the political-economic parameters are only the corrective factors of the physical-economic and socio-demographic parameters, in many cases they have had a key role in determining the carrying capacity. Not infrequently, the political-economic parameters are those which are the basis for deciding on a development scenario by choosing between two extremes, and so are they for determining the ultimate carrying capacity. Consideration of the political-economic parameters is also necessary in the process of merging frequently diverging results of the CCA, arrived at on the basis of separately analyzed physical-ecological and socio-demographic parameters. The political-economic parameters are also important for a full understanding f local environments and the ways in which they function.
DOCUMENTATION PHASE AND MAPPING
1. BOUNDARIES OF THE TOURIST DESTINATION AREA (REGION)
2. GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE TOURIST DESTINATION (REGION) AND ITS
DEVELOPMENT
3. TOURISM APPEAL AND ATTRACTIONS
4. TOURISM, ECONOMY AND POPULATION
5. STATE OF DOCUMENTATION
6. ADDITIONAL COLLECTION OF DATA
II ANALYSIS PHASE
1. TYPOLOGY OF THE TOURIST DESTINATION
2. RELATIONSHIP OF THE TOURIST DESTINATION TO ITS WIDER ENVIRONMENT
3. STATED LIMITATIONS OR CONTROLS
4. EVALUATION OF TOURISM RESOURCES, TOURISM DEMAND AND TOURIST PRODUCT
5. ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS
III TOURISM DEVELOPMENT OPTIONS
1. PREPARATION OF ALTERNATIVE SCENARIOS
2. ANALYSIS OF SCENARIOS
3. SELECTION OF THE MOST SUITABLE SCENARIO
IV CCA FORMULATION PHASE
1. TOURISM DEVELOPMENT MODEL DESIGN
2. CALCULATION OF CARRYING CAPACITY
3. INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE APPLICATION OF CCA
V APPLICATION, PROPOSALS AND MONITORING
In considering carrying capacity the three components are assigned different weights (or importance) in different destinations. These differences stem from the type
(characteristics/particularities) of the place, the type(s) of tourism present and the
tourism/environment interface. The three are interrelated to some extent.
The type of tourism determines the basic characteristics of tourist behaviour –to
some extent- and condition the tourist/local community, tourism/local economy
and tourist development/environmental quality relationships. The type of tourism
can be expressed in terms of the motive(s) for visiting a place, the mode of
mobility and transport, the frequency-length of stay- and activity range of
tourists, etc. In this context it is important to consider differences among types of
tourists in terms of expectations, attitudes and behaviour as these condition the
pressures and impacts of tourism on a place.
The tourism/environment interface is a composite of the previous two factors
mainly in the form and type of tourist development (spatial patterns), the phase in
a life-cycle context of the destination, the level of organizational and technological systems employed, the management regime, etc. The tourism/environment interface is expressed in terms of constraints evolving either from the impacts of tourism on the environment or from the degradation of the environment on tourism.
Coastal areas:
Coastal areas are normally associated with mass tourism, large scale construction
and infrastructure, intensive land development and extensive urbanization, a
prevalent model in most Mediterranean destinations. Carrying capacity issues
revolve around considerations about tourist density, the use of beaches and tourist
infrastructure, congestion of facilities, sea pollution, etc.
Islands:
Island tourism, if not falling within the previous category, is more of the selective
type with small and medium scale accommodation, often in (or around) existing
settlements, rural local societies, small communities, etc. Carrying capacity
considerations focus on the relationship of tourism with the local society/culture,
the effects on local production systems and the economy of the island, quality of
life but also the demands and impacts on resources such as water and energy, the
management of waste, etc.